Your Legacy Is Not Your Subaru

My husband and I had the chance for a short overnight get-away for our 17th anniversary today. Last evening, after (a way-too-large) dinner, we took advantage of the long-lasting sunlight and the beautiful weather and went for a stroll through the cemetery that is right next to the bed & breakfast where we'd booked a room.

I'm one of those weird people that enjoys walking through graveyards and reading epitaphs, because there's such a sense of history that comes with it. What was this person like? What did he or she like or dislike? Who were his or her great loves? Though we both live(d) in the same city, the city he knew was very different from the city I know now; I wonder in what ways it was different? Was she sickly, and that's why she died at 18? Did this 28 year-old "beloved wife" die in childbirth? Oh, he lived from 1823 to 1864. I wonder if he died in the Civil War? Here's a soldier who died at the Battle of Antietam Creek -- what kind of horrors did he face during the Civil War?

I kind of zeroed in on this again last evening: We each, no matter how great or how unimportant, leave behind us a legacy, a story, a great or small impact on the people coming behind us. 

How could I, teaching assistant, mom to three, wife to one... have any kind of an impact or leave any kind of a legacy?

In my daily reading, I reached Joshua 12 this morning. I took one glance at it and thought, Lord, it's a list of defeated kings. You're not going to be able to teach me anything from that.

Let me just clarify, the second you say "You're not going to be able to..." to the Lord -- you may as well go back to bed and start over. That's the wrong start to your morning. ;) My God can do anything, anything; there is nothing He is not able to do -- and if he wants to toss a list of kings who were defeated by the Israelites in front of me and teach me something, then I'm pulling out my mental pencil and taking copious notes.

So, after a mental and spiritual adjustment, I went back to Joshua 12. "These are the kings of the land whom the Israelites had defeated and whose territory they took over... Sihon king of the Amorites, Og king of Bashan... and then a long list of other unnamed kings, though we get the names of their cities.

I wonder if Sihon and Og ever thought someone might spot their names in the pages of a thick book (What's a book? they might ask. We do scrolls and clay tablets in 1400-1200 B.C.) on May 22, 2021? Sure, these men were kings, perhaps even great ones, but this is what they're known for; this is their legacy:

In Numbers 21:21-35, Sihon hears the Israelites want to pass through his land. He meets with the Israelite messengers, who bring word to him from Moses (who is still alive at that point): "Let us pass through your country. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the king's highway until we have passed through your territory." 

In other words, Israel says: "We'll be good and pick up any trash behind us."

But Sihon isn't having it. He gathers his army and marches out to meet Israel in battle. And he is defeated. Later in that same passage, Og king of Bashan (north of Sihon's territory) does the same thing. Both of these kings march against Israel and are totally wiped out. Both of these kings are known for standing up against the God of Israel.

That's their legacy. That's what they're remembered for. Waaaaay later, in Nehemiah 9:22, Israel is still talking about it. They're gathered together for what is essentially a national day of prayer and repentance, and they review their history in one of the most beautifully recorded prayers in Scripture. In verse 22, Sihon and Og show up: "You [God] gave them [Your chosen people Israel] kingdoms and nations, allotting to them even the remotest frontiers. They took over the country of Sihon king of Heshbon and the country of Og king of Bashan."

Why? Because these men had stood up against God, against His will and purposes -- and that's how they were remembered. 

Here's my point: I don't think Og and Sihon were men who only thought of battle and of standing up to defeat other nations and who hated Israelites and their God. Maybe Sihon liked painting and swimming. Maybe Og enjoyed long walks in the country and tennis. I don't know. The thing is, though, that while many small parts made up their whole, what became their legacy, what became the thing they're remembered for in 2021 -- was standing up against God.

From Daniel 7:9-10: "As I watched, thrones were set in place and the Ancient of Days took His seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of His head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before Him. Thousands upon thousands attended Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened."

So when that last day comes and every one from every page of history -- recorded and unrecorded -- stands before the Ancient of Days, when the court is seated and the books are opened...

What will our legacy be? What will we be remembered for? Our legacy should not be taken lightly; it's not the brand name of a car, it's not a thing to be trifled with. Jesus Himself said: "But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the Day of Judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:36-37).

I want to be remembered as standing for God, as being His bondservant, as bearing the marks of Jesus on my body, as being faithful to Him, as being a vessel for His Holy Spirit, leaky and warped and cracked and irregular and imperfect as I am.